Pages

Friday, November 16, 2012

Rise Of The Robots

Should humans brace themselves for a coming ‘robotics revolution’? I think so.

I recently watched The Terminator again on TV last week. More and more, the technology in that film is coming into existence. Think about it. Just a few years ago, most of us never imagined the use of military drones as they're being used today. As rules of engagement continue to change, militaries adapt their tactics to include the increasing use of unmanned weaponry.

However, behind the hot button issue of drones lies a military robotics industry that is developing machinery which is not only finding its way onto the battlefield, but into civilian life, as well.

Robots today have the capability to drive automobiles, perform surgeries, and do household chores, among other tasks. As integration escalates, what legal and ethical issues arise?

6 comments:

While I presented it as a thought about how robotics are changing our society, and that we need to consider the ethical, moral, and legal aspects of increasing the use of robotics, there are some other aspects of it that catch my eye.

The first is that news stations from other countries seem to be way ahead of us in how they present the news. They include their audience. They seek outside participation and aren't seemingly restricted in the views and opinions. Everyone's opinion is important.

The second is the diversity. This video presentation includes a diverse population of opinions. Everyone included in this video comes from a different background or culture. I don't think you could possibly find a more diverse population of participants.

Thirdly, they're all using technology to report the news and include others. Computers, Skype, Twitter, and traditional news reporting. This is the wave of the future, using all available forms of social media, but yet you don't often see it in mainstream American media. I find it fascinating.

Increasingly, corporate profits have been rising at the expense of workers in general, including workers with the skills that were supposed to lead to success in today’s economy. Why is this happening?

One is that technology has taken a turn that places labor at a disadvantage; the other is that we’re looking at the effects of a sharp increase in monopoly power. Think of these two stories as emphasizing robots on one side, robber barons on the other.

To assess this, we begin by implementing a novel methodology to estimate the probability of computerisation for 702 detailed occupations, using a Gaussian process classifier. Based on these estimates, we examine expected impacts of future computerisation on US labour market outcomes, with the primary objective of analysing the number of jobs at risk and the relationship between an occupation’s probability of computerisation, wages and educational attainment.

According to our estimates, about 47 percent of total US employment is at risk. We further provide evidence that wages and educational attainment exhibit a strong negative relationship with an occupation’s probability of computerisation.

"The University of Rochester Medical Center's pharmacy plans to automate its compounding pharmacy operation, installing five robots and new specialized software to do much of the work now done by human pharmacists and tracked with paper records.."